J.R. Clynes

John Robert Clynes (27 March 1869-23 October 1949) was Home Secretary of the United Kingdom from 8 June 1929 to 26 August 1931, succeeding William Joynson-Hicks and preceding Herbert Samuel. He also served as Leader of the Labor Party from 14 February 1921 to 21 November 1922, succeeding William Adamson and preceding Ramsay MacDonald; he was the first Englishman to lead the party.

Biography
John Robert Clynes was born in Oldham, Lancashire, England on 27 March 1869, annd he was educated at elementary school. He began work in a textile mill at the age of 10, and he became an active trade unionist. Clynes joined the Labor Party in 1893, and he became an MP for North-East Manchester in 1906. He opposed Labor's entry into H.H. Asquith's coalition in 1915, but he served under Lloyd George from 1917 as Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Food Control during World War I. He was elected chairman of the parliamentary Labor Party in 1921, leading it in the 1922 general election. He lost this post in the same year to Ramsay MacDonald, but in the first two Labor governments was Lord Privy Seal (1924) and Home Secretary (1929-1931). He lost his seat in 1931, but he returned to the House of Commons in 1935, remaining there until his retirement in 1945. Clynes died in 1949.